eMedicine Specialties > Pediatrics: Surgery > Otolaryngology

Cystic Hygroma: Follow-up

Author: Jason L Acevedo, MD, Resident Physician, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Walter Reed Army Medical Center
Coauthor(s): Rahul K Shah, MD, FACS, FAAP, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences; Attending Physician, Department of Otolaryngology, Children's National Medical Center; Holly L Neville, MD, Assistant Professor of Clinical Surgery, Division of Pediatric Surgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine; Michael D Poole, MD, PhD, Consulting Staff, Georgia Ear Institute
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Dec 8, 2009

Follow-up

Complications

  • Complications include airway obstruction, hemorrhage, infection, and deformation of surrounding bony structures or teeth if left untreated.
  • Complications from the surgical excision of a cystic hygroma (CH) are myriad and are related to the location and structures adjacent to the mass; these include damage to a neurovascular structure (including cranial nerves), chylous fistula, chylothorax, hemorrhage, and recurrence. Most recurrences occur within the first year but have been reported to occur as long as 10 years after excision.

Prognosis

  • Unlike in hemangiomas, spontaneous resolution of CH is uncommon. Recurrence is rare when all gross disease is removed. If residual tissue is left behind, the expected recurrence rate is approximately 15%.
  • In prenatal CH, diagnosis after 30 weeks' gestation is considered a positive prognosticator.

Miscellaneous

Special Concerns

  • Intrapartum diagnosis of cystic hygroma presents a unique situation and is detailed above (see Surgical Care).
 
Acknowledgments

The authors and editors of eMedicine gratefully acknowledge the contributions of previous author, Charles S Cox, Jr, MD, to the development and writing of this article.



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References
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Further Reading

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Keywords

cystic hygroma, CH, cystic lymphatic lesion, macrocystic lymphatic malformation, hemangiomas, microcystic lymphangioma, cystic lymphangioma, lymphatic rests, capillary lymphangioma, cavernous lymphangioma, suprahyoid lesions, infrahyoid lesions, Turner syndrome, Down syndrome, trisomy 18, trisomy 13, Noonan syndrome, Klinefelter disease, Fryns disease, multiple pterygium disease, achondroplasia, Gorham-Stout syndrome

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Contributor Information and Disclosures

Author

Jason L Acevedo, MD, Resident Physician, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Walter Reed Army Medical Center
Jason L Acevedo, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, American College of Surgeons, and American Medical Association
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Coauthor(s)

Rahul K Shah, MD, FACS, FAAP, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology and Pediatrics, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences; Attending Physician, Department of Otolaryngology, Children's National Medical Center
Rahul K Shah, MD, FACS, FAAP is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Medical Quality, American College of Surgeons, Massachusetts Medical Society, Phi Beta Kappa, Society of University Otolaryngologists-Head and Neck Surgeons, and Triological Society
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Holly L Neville, MD, Assistant Professor of Clinical Surgery, Division of Pediatric Surgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Holly L Neville, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Surgeons, American Pediatric Surgical Association, and Association of Women Surgeons
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Michael D Poole, MD, PhD, Consulting Staff, Georgia Ear Institute
Michael D Poole, MD, PhD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, American College of Surgeons, and American Society for Microbiology
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Medical Editor

Orval Brown, MD, Director of Otolaryngology Clinic, Professor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
Orval Brown, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Bronchoesophagological Association, American College of Surgeons, American Medical Association, American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Society for Ear, Nose and Throat Advances in Children, and Society of University Otolaryngologists-Head and Neck Surgeons
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Pharmacy Editor

Mary L Windle, PharmD, Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy, Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Managing Editor

John E McClay, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Children's Hospital of Dallas, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School
John E McClay, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy, American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, American College of Surgeons, and American Medical Association
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

CME Editor

Paul D Petry, DO, FACOP, FAAP, Consulting Staff, Freeman Pediatric Care, Freeman Health System
Paul D Petry, DO, FACOP, FAAP is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Osteopathy, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians, and American Osteopathic Association
Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Glenn C Isaacson, MD, FACS, FAAP, Professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Pediatrics, Temple University School of Medicine
Glenn C Isaacson, MD, FACS, FAAP is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Bronchoesophagological Association, American College of Surgeons, American Laryngological Rhinological and Otological Society, American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology, and Society of University Otolaryngologists-Head and Neck Surgeons
Disclosure: Covidien Honoraria Consulting

 
 
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